


Black Christmas.

by Lauren_is_a_moron



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: All The Ships, Alternate Universe - College/University, Christmas, End of the World, F/F, I want to say more but in the tags but it'll spoil it, Jarchie - Freeform, M/M, Trapped In Elevator, bughead - Freeform, dark christmas fic, kind of, varchie
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-01
Updated: 2018-01-03
Packaged: 2019-02-09 04:46:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12880455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lauren_is_a_moron/pseuds/Lauren_is_a_moron
Summary: It’s the holidays and Betty Cooper has finished her last class of the semester and plans to spend Christmas with her family in Riverdale. Instead however, she finds herself trapped in an elevator with three other kids; Jughead Jones the James Dean reject who she quickly and stupidly falls for, Veronica Lodge, the chatty princess, and Archie Andrews, the kid with a heart of gold but approximately three brain cells. Betty quickly realizes that they’re going to be stuck together a while. It’s not quite the family she expected to spend Christmas with. With no phones, internet, and barely any light, it doesn’t take long for them to start turning on each other. Though what exactly caused the elevator to crash? Betty doesn’t understand how safe she and the others really are, cut off from the outside world.The dark haired boy let out a sigh, and his next words sent shivers down Betty’s spine. “Yeah, we’re stuck here,” His breath was shaky. “Most likely until the college opens again.”Betty couldn’t help asking; “And when does it open again?”He frowned at her. “I’m gonna say mid January? Though I could be wrong.”





	1. The Crash.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first ever Christmas fic and I'm sO EXCITED to add creepy elements into it- and just make it a kinda freaky festive fic :D I really hope you enjoy! This fic will be updated on the run up to Christmas/The New Year :)

It was the last day before the holiday’s and no amount of caffeine would be able to raise Betty Cooper’s spirits. She blamed it entirely on the night before, where she’d spent the whole night playing Cards Against Humanity with her flatmates. It was supposed to have been a Christmas party. There had been way too much alcohol involved. She swore she could still taste it on her breath, on her tongue and teeth, despite brushing her teeth repeatedly in the morning and forcing down a tuna sandwich at lunch. Betty stared at her laptop screen. She wasn’t entirely sure what the heck the lecturer was going on about. She should have skipped class, since it was her last one before the holidays. But she needed the notes.

The lecturer's voice was a distant echo in her head as she blinked hard, trying hard to stay awake. But it was so damn hard. The lecture theater was warm and toasty. She almost felt at home. The glow of her laptop was hurting her eyes even when she had turned the brightness right down. Betty had managed to grab a seat right at the back of the class. Just in case she passed out on her laptop. Which now she thought about it, wouldn’t be such a bad thing. This was college. Kids went to classes in their pajamas half wasted from the night before. Surely if Betty just closed her eyes and rested them for a little while, she’d gather some energy.  It was Christmas. Betty thought. She wasn’t exactly in the festive spirit.

Betty could feel herself falling forward, as exhaustion seemed to flood her, turning her arms to lead, causing them to drop the pen she had forgotten she’d been holding. Betty stared at the pen for a long while, trying to figure out how exactly she had gotten it. She didn’t remember bringing one to class. Huh. Betty cleared her throat and straightened up, her hands automatically going to play with her loose ponytail. Like most kids in her class, she hadn’t bothered with effort, clothes wise. She’d thrown on a sweater over some leggings and ballet flats. Betty didn’t even remember putting make up on. She sighed softly, and turned her gaze to the PowerPoint illuminating the class of kids. She was sure she wasn’t the only one in her own world. A few seats down from her, a kid was watching YouTube Videos. She could vaguely make out a soccer field, quickly switching to a crowd of delirious fans.

 _Fascinating_. She thought, rolling her tired eyes. Though she wasn’t even sure she could manage that. Every time she tried to focus on the text on the presentation, her vision blurred and the words seemed to form into one long line of mushed up text. The presentation was about angles in Journalism. If she wasn’t so damn tired, she might have payed attention. But instead, her foggy mind persuaded her to mess around on her laptop instead. She rested her head in her arms, one hand stretched out so she could scroll down Instagram on her laptop. Then she was going to her favorite indie film site, eagerly looking for new releases she could watch at the local movies. But there were none newly listed.

When Betty was half-heartedly stalking some kid from high school’s Facebook profile, her foggy mind jumped into action and she was dragged back to reality when students around her started to pack up their notes and laptops and leave the hall. She sat up groggily, wiping what she was pretty sure was drool from her mouth, and stuffed her laptop into her bag, before shouldering it. She needed coffee and fast. There was a small coffee shop just towards her halls. From memory, it closed at six and when she glanced at her phone, the time was quarter to. She could totally make it. Betty could already feel the warm drink nursed against her frozen fingers.

“Happy Holidays, everyone.” The lecturer bid them goodbye, and Betty’s class exchanged the greeting between them, hugging and passing gifts, chatting loudly about parties, and seeing their parents.

Betty joined the stream of kids leaving class and put her head down, letting her blonde hair fall in her face. She wasn’t in the mood for any kind of communication. If Kevin Keller from journalism club saw her like this, he’d have words to say. She had no doubt there would be a grin on his face, followed by a puppy-like frown crinkled on his lips. “Wait, why wasn’t I invited to your flat Christmas party?”

She could practically hear him in her head, if she really concentrated. Damn, his voice sounded so real. Her mind was playing tricks on her, she really, really needed coffee. And chocolate. She made a mental note in her head as she descended down the staircase with the crowd of literature students. When she looked up through the huge glass windows looking over campus, the sky was already a navy blue. She loved short days. She was used to spending them with Polly. They would watch Christmas movies and eat junk food while talking about boys, life, anything really. But Betty had been away from her home town of Riverdale in New York to study at NYU. She was at the end of her first semester into her college experience and she was broke, living on macaroni and cheese and had made out with some random kid the night before after he had given her a piggyback to her room. Classes wise, Betty was too tired and delirious to even remember her subjects. She started thinking about going home for Christmas. Riverdale was beautiful when it was lit up. She pictured the whole town singing carols together in the square.

The campus was already strung with festive lights. There was a huge Christmas tree outside the building, and Betty could just about see the sparkling star. Excitement thrummed through her, chasing away the sluggish feeling. Her parents would be coming to pick her up tomorrow. She had one last night on campus, and planned to use it binging the hell out of Netflix.There were so many shows she needed to catch up on.

Suddenly there seemed to be a drastic change around her, the air buzzing with excitement.  There were joyous hisses and yells around her, and she felt like she had been dragged back to Junior high. Betty frowned, but saw it automatically. A flurry of white cascading from the sky through the windows, lighting up dizzying colors from the lights. She couldn’t help smiling. Snow.

The crowd grew more excited, kids eager to get outside and enjoy the first snow of winter.

 The Hastings building held all the Literature classes. Betty made it down to floor three, and stepped out of the crowd, watching as students piled down the stairs. They reminded her of a stampede of deer. She felt her stomach twist uneasily, that familiar twinge of anxiety sneaking up on her. If she joined the crowd, there could be a chance of her suffocating, or more likely; falling and making a fool of herself. Betty waited for the stream of kids to slow down, but they kept coming in groups, laughing, yelling, some of them being idiotic jocks who hadn’t grown out of high school deciding to leap down tiers of steps, while the more sensible ones yelled at them to be careful. It was freezing, with it being mid-December. Betty hugged her arms around her chest and pulled her scarf over her nose and mouth. It was a nervous habit she’d had since she was a kid. When she was scared or anxious, Betty always covered her mouth and nose. Whether it was with her long blonde hair, or her scarf. In High School she sometimes went as far as covering her whole face with her arm because she felt sick with anxiety, her heart slamming into her chest, stomach writhing. She always had to take deep breaths to calm herself down.

That’s what she did. Betty took a few steps away from the carnage, and counted to ten in her head. She pivoted on her flats, looking for a way out which wasn’t _that way_ , and her prayers seemed to have been answered when she spotted it across the long hall, dotted with student paintings and posters adverting college clubs and frat party’s. There it was, right next to the entrance to the Humanities department. An elevator. Betty quickly made her way over to it, stabbing the button on the side repeatedly until it bleeped and turned a light shade of green. She felt her fear melt away as she eagerly stepped into the small box like compartment. There were mirrors for walls and a fancy keypad. Betty took a moment to breathe. She was fine. Nobody and nothing was going to hurt her. Her mind was just stupid, stupid, anxiety. She let out a shaky breath of relief and reached to press **GROUND FLOOR.**

But before she could, there was a female shout from outside. “Hey, wait!” Betty froze and stumbled back, letting her finger slip from the panel. There was a girl running towards her. Well, not to Betty specifically. The elevator. But Betty still stepped back, her heart jumping into her throat. Her mind was playing tricks on her again, She needed sleep. The girl was olive skinned with long dark dark hair which seemed to billow behind her as she ran, clicking across the marble hall in her heels. She wore a tight black dress, a thick denim jacket and held a coffee in one hand, and her phone in the other. _Priorities._ Betty thought, fighting back a smile. The girl made it, and slid in next to her, flashing Betty a thankful grin. “Sorry about that!” The girl’s smile was friendly, and not what Betty was expecting. The girl looked like the brunette, slightly older Regina George of NYU. The rich bitch socialite who had a platinum card and bought the latest Starbucks holiday drinks. Betty frowned at the coffee cup enviously. She could almost _smell_ the crushed beans, the warm milk and sugar. The girl caught her look, and she raised her eyebrows.

“Do you want it? It’s a Festive special!” She smiled, offering Betty the drink. When Betty took way too long to reply, the girl shrugged and took a sip. “I dunno, girl. You look like you need it.”

 _Oh._ Okay, now Betty was offended. She ignored the girl’s smirk. “No offense of course!” She giggled. Betty already hated her. The girl’s coffee was really tempting. She needed to get to that campus coffee shop before it shut. Otherwise there was the crappy store coffee in the flat. It just wasn’t the same. With that in mind, and her burning desire to get away from Miss Socialite, Betty wandered over to the panel and once again went to thump the ground floor button. Betty glanced at the girl, and she nodded, already occupied with her phone as she took hasty sips of her caramel Machiato or whatever the hell she drank. But as she was about to click the button, there were twin male yells. One yelled; “Wait!” and another; “Can you just- hold on? Jeez!” Betty stared as two boys ran over, one of them, a redhead, stumbling, with an armful of books and his backpack as he tried to stuff them all in at once, and the other, a raven haired boy who had his head ducked, eyes on the ground. Betty noticed a knitted grey beanie nestled on his head.  She couldn’t help resembling him to James Dean. The way he moved, his dark hair, a just about visible curved jaw line. She could almost bet he was pretentious. With a name like "Thomas" or "Samuel".

Betty smiled politely. But really, she was dying inside. The coffee shop was probably making its last orders and here she was, holding the elevator for two boy's who looked like they had just stepped out of Grease. Both of them sported black jackets, though Betty doubted they were friends. The raven head glanced up at her for a second, scrutinizing her through dark chocolate curls falling in his eyes. She tried to smile. But it felt more like a grimace. The boy looked away almost instantly.

“Thanks!” The redhead shot her a grateful smile as he practically tripped into the elevator, still wrestling with his backpack. He was followed by the boy with the beanie, who muttered an awkward ‘Thanks’ before joining the three of them, cramping into the small space. Before Betty could try the button again, the dark haired girl was shoving past her and turning to the boys with a tooth rotting smile. “Are we all in?” Her voice was smooth and teasing. The redhead smiled and shouldered his bag, and the raven haired boy shrugged. “Can you just press the button?” He murmured. The girl rolled her eyes. “Rude.” But she stabbed it with a relieved sigh, and the doors slowly swung shut on the four of them. There was a bleeping noise before the lift started to descend slowly. Betty tried hard not to make eye contact with any of them, or the girl's coffee, which was looking more and more desirable every time she bothered sneaking a peek. She could smell the aroma drift into her nostrils and her mouth watered.

Betty noticed the raven haired girl was sipping it way too loud, and suddenly became paranoid. Was she slurping it on purpose? Betty turned her attention to the floor. Since when she bothered looking at the redhead, he suddenly looked incredibly uncomfortable, like he’d just pissed himself. She noticed he had freckles covering his cheeks. It was kinda cute. He was clutching his backpack straps way too right. The four of them stewed in silence as the elevator slowly thrummed down to each floor. Betty could hear the mechanics rumbling beneath them. Was it supposed to sound like that? She couldn't help wondering. She caught the redhead's eye, and he frowned at her, as if he was thinking the same thing.

 _Well, she’d missed the coffee shop._ She slipped her phone out of her pocket and squinted at it. Though her vision was still weird and foggy, since her mind was sleep deprived. She frowned, leaning forward  and brought her phone closer to her face. And it was then, when a loud screeching noise attacked her ears, and her first instinct was to slam her hands over her ears. But that sent off a chain reaction. She dropped her phone, and quickly bent down to pick it up. But what stopped her in her tracks was another piercing shriek, which sounded like something _snapping_. “What’s that?” The dark haired girl yelled over mechanical rumbling that seemed to be coming from above them. Betty tried not to think about the movies, where the large mechanical belt holding the elevator-

_Snapped._

The boy’s seemed to come into fruition and the redhead shrugged with a small smile, after glancing up at the struggling bulb as it tried to produce light, but continued to flash erratically. His brown eyes widened with worry but he shot reassuring glances to all three of them. “I’m sure we’re okay.” He said. Though his voice was slightly choked, as if he was forcing the words out. His smile made Betty’s heart flutter a little. The raven haired boy nodded. “Probably nothing,” He muttered, with an eye-roll. Betty resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He was acting like a teenager.

But that was when the lights above them flickered, and this time the beanie wearing boy frowned, scrunching his eyes and glaring at the lights. “Okay,” he murmured. “That’s something.” The elevator suddenly lurched, and he staggered into the redhead, who was quick to catch him, helping him up. "You alright?" The redhead dragged him to his feet. The dark haired girl stumbled and the coffee slipped from the fingers and the four of them watched, a cocktail of horror and confusion on their faces as the cup dropped to the floor, and the brown beverage leaked out, spilling over the metallic flooring. Betty stared hard. Part of her was freaked out, because she was pretty sure coffee didn’t go well in elevators. Though another part of her, the ravenous, sleep deprived demon that was trying to claw its way out of her, wanted to kneel and slurp the coffee off the floor. She glanced at the dark haired girl, who was smirking at her, as if actually expecting her to.

“I’m pretty sure,” the beanie wearing boy spoke up, clearing his throat. He pointed at the spillage. “That’s bad. I mean this whole thing is electronic? What doesn’t go well with electronics?” His gaze went to each of them, but nobody got to answer, because the lights flickered once again and Betty swore she caught the collective soft sigh from all three of them; “Fuck.”

Before any of them could react, the bulb blew, spaying shards of glass over the four of them and plunging them into darkness. Betty felt her heart leap into her throat. They were still moving, plummeting. The noises of the mechanics didn’t stop, only getting worse, drowning her thoughts with just that sound. She blinked in the darkness, trying to find some kind of outline, or shadow. But these were strangers she had just met. _How could they give her comfort?_ She thought. Her mind was racing as she clung onto the walls and suddenly the floor underneath her trembled, before the elevator jolted violently.

Betty let out a squeak, which seemed to ring out in symphony with three other sharp cries of surprise. She lost her footing, crashing to the ground. Though she wasn’t the only one. Betty felt three bodies slam into hers, and she was knocked to the ground, all the breath being dragged from her lungs. That was when the rattling stopped, the shifting and trembling of the mechanics ceased, and the elevator came to an abrupt halt.

Coffee. Betty realized, after the elevator had stopped rattling, and the four of them lay there in silence, their limbs entwined with each other. Someone was lying on her back, and another person’s leg was stuck in her face. Betty could smell it sticking to her face, her hair. She had fallen in the dark haired girl’s coffee. Of course she had. Betty lay there for a moment, trying to catch her breath. Nobody was speaking, except in gasps of breath, cutting through the silence. Betty didn’t have the heart to shove the others off of her. Even when her face was mushed into the floor, into the sugary spillage of coffee. This wasn’t what she meant when she mentally craved one. After a while of lying there, forcing herself not to cry out in pain as the other three shifted on top of her, trying to straighten themselves out. They were all frozen with shock, Betty got that. But why was it taking this long for them to gather themselves and stand up? She panicked then, terrified the three other students had been knocked out by the quake.

Though thankfully, she was wrong. After what felt like years had passed, the dark haired girl let out a breathy moan. “Is- is everyone okay?” She whispered. Betty automatically made an acknowledging grunt, followed by the boy’s. Finally, the three of them rolled their weight off of her and she was able to sit up, wincing when she felt her hair plastered to her sticky face. Betty stared at the dark, at the three shadows surrounding her. They sat in uncomfortable silence, fighting to catch their breath.

“Okay. Hold on,” The girl practically squeaked. She sounded like she was panicking, her breaths coming fast. “I-I have a light on my phone.” She said said softly. There was a shuffling noise before Betty found herself being blinded by a bright light, illuminating all four of them, who had gone from looking like professional students- the boy’s in their leather jackets and the dark haired girl in some kind of expensive dress, to disheveled kids. The boy with the beanie’s hair was all over the place, his jacket hanging off his shoulders, while the redhead sported a split lip, his red mop a tousled mess on his forehead. The dark haired girl seemed to be breathing heavily, her dress creased. Her right eye was swollen. Betty wondered if one of them had accidentally booted her when the elevator crashed. They sat in various positions. The dark haired girl was kneeling, the redhead was lying on his back and the beanie wearing boy was cross legged. They stared at each other, speechless, until the kid with the beanie spoke up.

Betty willed the doors to open. But she knew they wouldn’t. She was officially trapped in a tiny elevator with three strangers. Her stomach danced as she watched the girl’s torch light glimmer in the each glass walls holding them prisoner.

“I’m gonna go out on a whim here and say we’re stuck.” He muttered, before jumping up and groaning, stepping over the redhead to face the panel. “Can you shine the light over here?” He asked the girl. She nodded, pointing the beam of light directly at him. Betty watched him press various buttons. Though the keypad was dark. There were no longer lights illuminating each floor. Then he tried to force the lift doors open, and with a hiss of frustration, he sat back down. Betty was startled by a sudden robotic voice that flooded from the speakers. The dark haired girl let out a sharp gasp. “ **This is an automated response. We are sorry for the inconvenience. Maintenance will be with you shortly.”**

‘But wait,“ The redhead murmured, rubbing his eyes. He licked his bloody lip. ”Isn’t this building supposed to shut at six?“ He went pale. Betty already knew it was past six.

The dark haired boy let out a sigh, and his next words sent shivers down Betty’s spine. “Yeah, we’re stuck here,” His breath was shaky. “Most likely until the college opens again.”

Betty couldn’t help asking; “And _when_ does it open again?”

He frowned at her. “I’m gonna say mid January? Though I could be wrong.”

“Are you kidding?!” The redhead suddenly cried.

The raven haired boy let out a harsh laugh. “Yes, I was joking! This was all an elaborate plan to scare three randoms I don’t even know.” He growled in frustration and then jumped up, battering at the doors. “Help!” He yelled. “We’re stuck!”

The dark haired girl shakily got to her feet too and joined him. She threw herself into the door. “Can anyone hear us?!” She screamed. “We’re trapped!”

The girl swore under her breath. “Maintenance.” She whispered, turning to the others. “They’ll come and get us right?”

Nobody answered.

Betty found herself watching them both get progressively angrier as they took turns to try and get the door open. The redhead frowned at them too, his eyes wide. He didn't say anything. The two eventually sat back down, after letting out their anger on the stubborn door. The girl looked like she was about to cry, while the boy managed to pull a neutral expression.

It hit Betty then, that she was stuck. She was fucking stuck in an elevator with three kids, until the New Year. She sat, trying hard not to cry. The others seemed to be stuck in their own private states of woe too. After a while of just sitting in mute silence, the redhead spoke up, dragging a hand though his hair. “Are we gonna end up like, eating each other, like on the films?”

His voice was shaking, but he was clearly trying to turn the situation less horrifying. In the end, it payed off. The dark haired boy scoffed. “Probably.”

“You’re both gross.” The dark haired girl muttered. She flicked her phone’s beam of light to the ceiling. “Shouldn’t the emergency lights come on?” She whimpered. Betty shuffled uncomfortably, sitting on her knees. She hoped so. The girl’s phone light was giving her a headache. “They should do.” The dark haired boy said. “But if what I’m thinking is true and the power in the whole building has gone out, we’re kind of screwed.” When everyone frowned at him, his lips curled into a small smirk and he raised his hand, waving it awkwardly in greeting. “Jughead Jones.” He introduced himself.

 _Oh._ Betty thought. So he didn't have a pretentious name.

“I might as well spill my name since we’re gonna be stuck here for a while.” He shrugged, his gaze flicking to Betty. “Besides, I’m gonna get sick of calling you Fuck Boy, Princess and Blondie.”

Blondie. Betty thought. It was better than other nicknames she had been called in the past. Betty wondered why none of them were freaking out yet. Maybe it was the calm before the storm. Or Maybe, they each secretly hoped the doors would magically open. "Wait, Fuck Boy?" The redhead looked offended. "What makes you think I'm a fuck boy?"

“Princess.” The dark haired girl repeated, with an eye-roll. She rested her phone in her lap so the beam hit everyone, lighting up their faces in an obnoxious pale light. “Well, if we’re playing that game. I’m Veronica Lodge, and I had you three down as Loner, Frat Boy and Coffee Girl.” Betty felt like laughing at that. Of course she was Coffee Girl. The dark haired boy, or Jughead, scoffed. “And what made you think I was a loner?”

He didn’t look mad. His voice was teasing. He seemed to be challenging the girl, who shrugged and smiled back sweetly. “I get it, Glass Head or whatever your name is. You’re trying to trick me into saying I was being prejudiced.”

The boy smirked and nodded. “Smart girl.” He said.  “And it’s Jughead.” He corrected, before his gaze went to the redhead. He leaned into the mirror with a sigh, folding his arms. “What about you?” He murmured.

The redhead shrugged. “Archie Andrews.” He smiled uneasily at them. “I was born in Riverdale, went to RHS and won a scholarship to come here and study music.” His eyes darkened. "And I'd like to shoot down your judgments. I'm not a frat boy." He smirked. "I just hang with them."

He was from Riverdale? Betty had never seen him before.

Jughead chuckled. “Dude, we wanted your name, not your life story.” He paused. “You went to Riverdale high? I don’t recognize you.”

Archie brought his legs to his chest, resting his head on his knees. “Can’t say I recognize you either.” He said, but his smile was friendly. Jughead smiled back, before moving onto Betty. “And finally we have Blondie with the coffee stained face.” He grinned at her, and Betty couldn’t help smiling back. His grin was infectious. She shuffled uncomfortably when pins and needles attacked her feet. “Betty Cooper.” She introduced herself, then after a pause; "I'm doing Journalism." Veronica looked impressed, while Archie nodded with an acknowledging smile.

Jughead nodded. His gaze lingered on her for a moment, and her stomach twisted with paranoia. Though he quickly looked away.

“Alright, now we all know each other,” He stretched out his legs. Does anyone have anything to eat? I’m starving.”

Veronica frowned in the torch light. “Shouldn’t we gather everything we have and save it?” She groaned. “After all, we could be stuck here for days.”

“More like weeks.” Archie muttered.

Jughead rolled his eyes. “Thank you, Mr and Mrs Optimism.”

“I’m here all night.” Veronica grumbled. Then after a pause; "Literally."

Though Jughead cocked his head. “Actually, that’s a good idea.” He shuffled back to create a space in the middle, and the rest of them followed suite. Veronica placed her phone light in the middle, once again lighting up the whole elevator. Betty ended up squeezed between Veronica and Archie as they emptied their bags and pockets. Betty reached into her own, pulling out her half eaten tuna mayo from earlier, a packet of Oreo’s she had been saving for the Stranger Things marathon she’d been planning, and her bottle of water. The others pulled out bits of food and half eaten bags of chips, candy and chocolate,as well as a fair amount of water bottles and soda. Then the four of them leaned over their stash and Jughead whistled. “Okay, we should make a note of everything.” He said, reaching into his bag and pulling out a notepad and pen. He handed them to Archie, who nodded and started to write down everything they had. Betty’s mouth watered when she spotted a half eaten packet of mini Snickers bars. Though she realized the others were staring at them too. Jughead met her gaze with a smirk. “Those Snicker bars were mine so I’m just saying-”

“Wait, no,” Veronica interrupted. “We’re supposed to be sharing the food. You can’t just take your candy back.”

“Agreed.” Archie murmured. He too was staring longingly at the mini chocolate bars. Betty wanted to laugh. They hadn’t even been stuck an hour yet, and they were already fighting. “Jug, I think we should split them between us.”

“Jug?” Jughead repeated, smirking at the redhead. “Oh, so I have a nickname now?”

“It’s a shorter version of your name!” Archie hissed back. He was chewing on the pen, and Jughead noticed, raising his eyebrows. “Can you not do that? I don’t want your saliva all over my-”

“Okay!” Veronica cut in, thankfully shutting down the brewing argument between the boys. Betty suspected it was just banter though, considering Archie and Jughead were both grinning at each other, temporarily breaking from their individual personalities to share a bro-moment. It was kind of cute, Betty thought. “Before this turns into Lord Of The Fucking Flies, let’s just remember we’re all scared,” Veronica lowered her voice. “We don’t need arguing right now in such a tight space. Okay?”

Archie frowned at her. “What’s Lord Of The Flies?”

Jughead scoffed. “Why am I not surprised you haven’t heard of Lord Of The Flies?” He chuckled. He shuffled closer to the redhead, almost uncomfortably close. "You didn't read the book?"

Archie only screwed up his face in confusion and shook his head. Veronica sent Betty a helpless look. Alright, time to take control. Or at least try to. She was pretty good at managing the journalism club. Though there were only a few members, all of which were her friends, so there was never much conflict. “Can we just-” She gestured to the stash of food and drinks. “Get all this noted down?” She nodded at Archie, who was still chewing on the pen. He sighed and went back to writing down each item. Jughead turned his attention to Veronica’s phone and picked it up, fiddling with the light until the girl snapped at him. Jughead reminded Betty of a toddler. Though she definitely noticed he was incredibly attractive. Though he was probably into Veronica. It only made sense. She was a neon light for guys like him.

“Okay!” Archie’s voice was muffled slightly, Jughead’s pen stil wedged between his teeth. “We have..” He started to list off the items.

In total, they had:

**Bottles of water X3**

**Soda X2**

**Oreo’s X1**

**Half eaten Tuna sandwich? (Archie had added far too many questions marks than necessary)  
**

**Packet of mints X1  
**

**Packet of Snicker bars X1  
**

**Nutrients bars X4  
**

**Reece’s Peanut Butter cups X1**

**Box of salad? (Perishable)  
**

**Chewing Gum X1  
**

That was nowhere enough food for them. Even if they conserved it, between the four of them, it might last a day or two.  
****

By the time Archie had finished listing off the items, Betty’s stomach was doing somersaults, and when she looked up at the others, they had similar expressions, though they all meant the same. Horror. Fear. Maybe some irritation from Jughead, who was glaring at Archie, still gnawing nervously on his pen. “Well shit.” Archie frowned at his phone. “The WiFi’s gone off.”

Veronica was first to speak, after they had all checked their phones. The WIFI had indeed switched off. Though Betty also noticed she had no signal. Which was weird, because she always had signal on campus, no matter where she was. Betty stared at her battery percentage and her stomach flipped over. 12%. She pressed her finger down hard on the power button. She had to conserve that last bit of battery to text her family when her signal came back. Though she couldn’t help leaning forwards, squinting at Jughead’s phone screen. He also had no signal. He was staring at his lock screen; a picture of himself and a little girl. Veronica clapped her hands together, snapping Betty out of it and the sound rattled her ears. Jughead glanced up from his own phone. He was no longer smiling. Archie dropped his into his lap with a shaky sigh. “We, my friends,” Veronica grinned at the three of them, though Betty knew how scared she was. It was clear in her eyes. The girl looked ready to break.

“Are fucked.”

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Okay, so this fic was supposed to be updated on the lead up to Christmas, but my account was suspended on the 3rd December (literally a day after I published this! You have no idea how pissed I was) till today, so uh..that didn’t happen. ANYWAY I’ve decided to carry this on, just as a late festive fic.
> 
> Lemme know if you would still like more! And here is a little preview: 
> 
> -

Once knowing her inevitable fate, Betty didn’t bother making conversation with the others. After she was sure at least four hours had passed and the four of them were still imprisoned in the elevator, it became obvious that maintenance weren’t coming. Despite Jughead pressing the alarm button at least fifty times. He’d stopped when Veronica had whispered, her voice shaking, that the whole panel was dark. Even if there was an alarm or a call button, the elevator was completely dead. There was no way of calling for help or escape. After that, the four of them had given up. Jughead had slumped on the floor and buried his head in his knees. Archie lay down on his back and stared at the ceiling, blinking hard. Betty wondered if the boy might actually start crying. Though Archie looked like he was concentrating, his eyes scrunched up as he glared at the glass panels illuminated by Veronica’s phone light. His red hair was tangled, splayed across his forehead as he seemed to be studying something, wrinkles lined his forehead as he lay in silence. Veronica lay next to Archie. Though she lay on her front, and screeched into her arms. Jughead had lifted his head a number of times, his chocolate brown hair hanging in sleepy eyes as he glared at the girl, his lips twisted into a scowl.

“Do you realize how irritating that is? He had grumbled. Veronica had responded by crying louder. Betty wasn’t sure if the girl was trying to wind him up, or she was genuinely panicking, crying and screaming into her arms. Nobody tried to comfort her. They were all trapped in their own personal nightmares. Betty thought about trying to console Veronica. Though she wasn’t sure what to say. She didn’t want to sugar coat it. But she also kind of really wanted the girl to stop screeching like a fucking banshee.

In the end, Jughead took his jacket off and wrapped it around his head, shoving his face into his lap once again. Archie didn’t seem to mind the girl’s crying. Betty wondered if he’d fallen into some kind of pre-slumber trance. He was still staring at the ceiling as if it held the secrets of the universe. Archie had used his own jacket as a pillow. He looked peaceful. Betty watched him for a while, waiting for the redhead to sit up and yell with a sudden wide grin, gushing his amazing plan he’d conducted in his brain. But that didn’t happen- of course it didn’t.

Eventually, Betty gave up watching Archie, and shuffled over to her own corner. The elevator was tiny, and could barely fit the four of them inside. Archie lay in the middle, Veronica parallel to him, and Jughead curled up in the corner. Betty chose to be stubborn and too chose the corner. She nestled her head in her lap and stayed like that for a long time. She tried to cry, but she was too damn tired. She tried to think about her family, about Polly. But it hurt too much. Instead she thought about the things that were bugging her. The last time she had bothered looking at her phone, she still had no signal. Neither did Jughead Jones. And she had a funny feeling the others were in the dark too. Which was weird. She always had signal on campus. How could she not? New York University was like a beacon, sitting right in the middle of the city.

Betty started to wonder if there had been some kind of mass power cut across the city. She prayed she was right. She had to be. There was no other explanation. Even if it was the holidays, even if the college was shut for Christmas, she was positive there were still people working on campus. So where were they? Betty’s exhausted mind started to go into overdrive as she began stringing together theories. But it was like forcing mangled jigsaw pieces together. Nothing made sense. The elevator had crashed only minutes after six. Surely there were still staff and students around. They must have heard their cries for help! So why didn’t they? Why was nobody coming? Betty thought about her mom. Surely she’d notice Betty’s absence in phone calls and call the college.

Betty lifted her head, and damn, her neck ached. She’d been sitting in the same position for hours. Veronica had stopped crying, and was silent, her head of sleek dark hair pressed into her knees. Betty could still feel her cheeks sticky with coffee. She felt filthy, longing to wash away the sugary beverage sticking her golden hair to her cheeks. She took a second to look around the tiny space. None of the others had moved. Jughead was still sagged in the corner, hiding his face. Betty wondered if he was asleep. But she swore he was trembling. Archie was still lying on his back, and he hadn’t moved a muscle. Though his eyes were shut, his chest rising and falling softly. The kid had fallen asleep.

Veronica was lying near the door, her head this time pressed into the floor. Betty peered through fraying eyelashes. She was so damn tired. But sleeping was no option. If she wanted to figure out what was going on, where help was, and most importantly; why she had no signal, she had to stay awake. It was funny. When she looked at the three of them, lying in various positions, legs entwined, feet resting on each other. Veronica had taken off her heels and her feet rested on Archie’s back. He hadn’t shoved her off. Yet. They reminded Betty of kindergartners. Here they were, eighteen years old and cut off from the outside world. They didn't have to act a certain way and attempt to be mature adults. Instead, there was nobody to judge them but themselves. And Betty was sure neither of them cared what the other thought.

The mediocre bond Betty had managed to create with the others had been severed by reality hitting each of them, like a bolt of electricity. They had barely any food and water to survive, they were trapped in a tiny space, and they were going to die. So Betty was going to wait to either starve to death or lose her mind. Whichever came first. She made a pact to herself, then. She wouldn’t talk to the others. If she was to make friends with them, and develop attachments to the three of them, there was no point. Their time was running out already. She didn’t want to know their stories, who they were, the fears and hopes for the future, if they were all going to die together trapped in a metal prison. Betty thought, shoving her face deeper into her arms to hopefully quench her stupid tears. _Morbid much?_ She hated sitting in silence. The only sound was their combined breaths as they each individually struggled to breathe. Betty could only bet they were thinking the same thing as her. How long until they ran out of air?

Was it possible to run out of oxygen? If they were trapped for a certain amount of time? - such as a god damn elevator.

Though she had to admit, at the back of her mind, she did want to know them. When she first met the three of them she had ignorantly judged them by first glance. Veronica was the Regina George of NYU with her platinum card and million dollar makeover. Archie was some frat boy, and Jughead? The James Dean Reject. Betty had only known them for a few hours, and already she knew that Archie was actually doing music, Veronica wasn’t as bitchy as she initially thought and Jughead wasn’t some pretentious asshole. He was actually a five year old boy stuck in the body of an eighteen year old NYU student. Betty wanted to know so much more. She wanted to know who they were, who they wanted to be. If they were in any other situation, she’d happily make effort to bond with them. But not now. There was no way she was going to try and make friend’s with the kid’s who she was going to eventually turn against, when she lost her mind from hunger or from freezing to death when the heaters switched off.

“Have any of you guys ever played Never Have I ever?”

Betty was momentarily startled by the voice. She thought about ignoring it, except it was shaky, quivering as if the boy was freezing cold. Though she knew the heaters hadn’t gone off yet. If they had, she would have known. She lifted her head once again, only to see Jughead looking directly at her. He wasn’t asleep after all. The boy peered at her through heavy eyes, his lips curled into a small smile. There was a single strand of hair hanging stray on his forehead that was starting to irritate her the more she stared at it. Betty straightened up and brought her knees to her chest, copying how he was sat.

“What?” She frowned.

 _Well, damn._ Betty had already broken her pact.

“You want to play a game?” She couldn’t help asking, and he nodded, shrugging. “If I’m going to be stuck with you guys for a while, I might as well get to know you.”

He was talking to the others too, though Betty wasn’t sure if they were listening - or conscious.

In the end she ended up nodding with a small smile. If it meant forgetting about their predicament, then so be it. Jughead sat up properly. “Yeah?” His smile widened. Betty wondered if he was trying to distract himself from something. He had stopped shaking. “What about you guys?” He spoke up louder. Betty followed his gaze to Archie and Veronica, and neither of them made a sound.

Jughead smirked at Betty, and then rolled his eyes. “Guys, I know you're awake.”

“So what if we are?” Archie muttered. His eyes were still shut. He shuffled uncomfortably, his head still cuddled into his jacket. “Isn’t that a kids game?”

“Yep.” Veronica muffled into the floor. Then after a pause; “Why would I spill my life to a bunch of strangers anyway?”

Jughead shrugged. “I see it like this; we only have each other now. The least we could do is try and get along,” the boy scratched the back of his head nervously. “So, is anyone in?”

**Author's Note:**

> This was conceived after watching The Walking Dead and then a random Christmas movie lmao. Tell me what you think! And leave kudos if you'd like more :) I've actually een stuck in lift before- it was only for like10 minutes but it was terrifying. welp.


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